Coming Home

"As soon as you add the voice to the cello, it transforms. I learned classical cello: Bach, etudes etc., that was really an adventure. But singing took me to an even more magical place." (Abel Selaocoe)

Forget everything you might think about cello and singing, the South African Abel Selaocoe, winner of the Opus Klassik Prize 2023, surpasses all expectations. Not only does he play and improvise fabulously on the cello and move effortlessly through all vocal registers, he also brings a completely new kind of universal musicality to the stage with African overtone singing and body percussion that is simply captivating. "Captivating, multi-layered, irresistible" is the Guardian's headline for Abel Selaocoe's CD "Where is Home". The SKO's program also includes the Haydn-inspired cult piece "Entr'acte" by New Yorker Caroline Shaw as well as the "Hirta-Rounds" by Irish composer David Fennessy about a now deserted northern Scottish island and "When we were trees" by Italian composer Giovanni Sollima, a post-minimalist series of pieces for two cellos and orchestra with a Mediterranean-oriental flair.

With:
Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra
Abel Selaocoe, violoncello and vocals
Sidiki Dembele, percussion
Susanne von Gutzeit, conductor

Program:

Caroline Shaw
Entr'acte

Abel Selaocoe
Own compositions

David Fennessy
Hirta-Rounds

Giovanni Sollima
When we were trees

Concert introduction at 19:30